DC will develop a Flashpoint film and while I’m giddy about this, it seems a tad bit early for that sort of world-redefining mega event. We’re less than a month out before Justice League and I’m still oscillating between excitement and aversion in regards to the future of the franchise. To that, I say Flashpoint is a brilliant idea... depending on how Justice League and the next couple of films perform. Warner Bros. is currently working on a get-out-of-jail-free card, a veritable reset button, namely as it pertains to its rogue player: Batman actor Ben Affleck.
Since his initiation into the DC cinematic universe, Affleck has been the root of many of the more newsworthy controversies. Rumors of his desire to leave the franchise have been met with increasingly hardening hearts against his involvement. Beyond the franchise itself, Affleck has been dealing with a myriad of personal struggles, including a reported battle with the bottle, a couple of box office blunders and a nasty divorce. These factors call his professed dedication to the cowl into question.
There are things in the franchise that people respond strongly to. Wonder Woman is the MVP thus far, but fans have grown fond of Jeremy Irons’ turn as Alfred, Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn and I have a sneaking suspicion that Jason Momoa is going to resonate with fans as Aquaman, despite his singular take on the character.
I like Affleck fine as the Dark Knight, but I don’t feel the way about him as I feel about RDJ as Iron Man, for instance. If replacing Affleck now means breathing new life into the franchise and the character, I think it’s worth it, even if it slightly damages continuity.
Earlier this week, actor Jeffrey Dean Morgan, who plays Negan in The Walking Dead, sat down with Jimmy Kimmel and may have let slip his involvement as Batman in the Flashpoint movie.
Morgan is an older man, granted, but this might soften people to the idea of alternate universes. It’s a clever mechanism to let Affleck tap out of the series while DC has a canonical reason that explains why some younger non-alcoholic is all of a sudden donning the cape. Only time will tell. The longevity of Affleck’s tenure probably hinges on how well Justice League performs, commercially and critically. The man’s only got a few more public embarrassments in him and understandably so. He’s a gifted filmmaker and actor and his time with black latex will end sooner or later.
Early word declares Justice League to be a good one, but that quite literally means nothing. We’ll have to find out the fate of the Bats on Nov. 17, when this turd crater hits theatres.
